Hello, New York City
by TheLaikynVictoria
Summary: McGee his having a rough time on some cases, causing nightmares. So he decides to take a break.  While in New York City, he meets a very...Special person.  Song fic for 'NYC Weather Report' by Five For Fighting.  Tim-Centric.   Entered in 3 NFA Challenges


_**A/N**_

_**Hey! This is a songfic I wrote specifically for the 'I Need A Break' Challenge over on NFA, and it turned into not only an entry for that, but also an entry to 'The Nightmare' challenge and 'The Paranormal' challenge.**_

_**This is all about our favorite geek! **_

_**Please review!  
**_

* * *

_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from all these thinkers... drinking up my thoughts again **_**  
**_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from all these choosers, losers... all my best of friends **_

McGee stared at the flashing digital clock on his bedside table.

3:45AM.

He sighed heavily and got out of bed, heading for the small kitchen of his apartment.

He poured himself a glass of orange juice and downed half of it in one gulp.

This was getting crazy.

Absolutely insane.

This was the 8th night in a row that he'd woken himself up in the middle of the night due to nightmares, and he was getting sick of it. The last case, and their current case, were just...Freaking him out, for some reason.

The last case involved a six-year-old girl vanishing from her home on the Marine base in Quantico. After a five day search, they found her body...Dumped in a river in Annandale.

They never found her kidnapper.

Their current case was just picked up two days before, and involved a Chief Petty Officer Rachel Downs. She was killed in her apartment; taken by surprise as she slept.

Within hours of the finding of her body, another young, female sailor was found in _her_ apartment, killed in the same manner.

Maybe it was the fact that McGee had a younger sister...He wasn't sure, but whatever it was, it was most definitely taking a toll on him.

He drank his orange juice in near silence, the only noise coming from the news on the TV playing softly from his bedroom. After putting the glass in the sink and turning the light off, he headed back for his bedroom.

He sat dejectedly on his bed and sighed heavily, again. He looked over at the TV, seeing the news about some bombing in Iraq killed hundreds of civilians, and turned it off.

All the sad, depressing news in the world was really getting him down, and he needed to get out of this rut he was in.

"Local LEOs found another body."

It sounded almost routine for Gibbs to say that. Almost as if it was 'nothing new'.

Or at least it sounded that way to McGee.

"Do they know who it is?" Tony asked as he grabbed his pack, slinging it on his shoulder.

"Arianna Hendricks." Gibbs replied, entering the elevator with his dutiful agents in tow.

The name suddenly starting ringing bells in McGee's head, telling him that he knew who it was, but he couldn't place it.

He shook it off, telling himself it was just his nerves from the past week and a half.

"Hey, McSleepy." Tony snapped in front of McGee's face, bringing him out of his daze. "The elevator stops..Meaning you get off of it now."

McGee shot him a glare but was mentally reprimanding himself. He couldn't space out on the job; it just wasn't acceptable.

They reached the crime scene within 10 minutes; a young female's apartment, like the others.

"McGee, pictures. Tony, sketch." Gibbs ordered as they made their way down the hallway towards the apartment. "Ziva, interview the landlord."

McGee was unpacking the camera as he approached the body lying oh-so-still in the bed.

What he saw nearly made him pass out.

Arianna.

Arianna Hendricks.

It suddenly dawned on him what 'bells' it had rang in his head earlier.

Arianna Hendricks and he had went to MIT together. They'd dated for a few months before calling it quits, both agreeing that they were better off as friends. He'd kept in contact with her up to five or six years ago. The last he'd heard she was going to the Naval academy to become a Marine.

Which she apparently had succeeded in doing, as they stood in her apartment now.

"Hellooo, McGee?"

He just stood frozen, staring at the corpse in front of him in shock...Sadness...Horror.

"McGee!"

He gulped, finally tearing his eyes away from her. His vision suddenly became blurry and he could feel the blood rushing to his head as his breath quickened.

He was going to pass out.

Suddenly, his knees buckled and he stumbled forward into Gibbs' and Tony's arms.

"Whoa, McWoozy, hang on there." Tony remarked, easing him into a chair. Gibbs put his hand on McGee's neck and forced his head between his knees.

His breathing slowly returned to normal and his vision became clear, again.

"You act like you've never seen a crime scene before, McGee." Gibbs stated, dropping down in a 'catchers position' in front of McGee.

"I...I-I, it's just I..I kn-know h-h-er." McGee stammered. "Er, kn-kn-knew her. We went t-t-to MIT together. W-We dated for a w-while."

Tony and Gibbs exchanged a glance before Gibbs carefully helped McGee to his feet and lead him out of the apartment and into the hallway.

"I'm sorry, Tim." He stated softly, watching as McGee slid down against the wall, sitting on the floor.

McGee looked up, shocked at his boss. Did he just apologize?

Did he just call him 'Tim'?

'When you said her name, at NCIS, I...I knew it sounded familiar," McGee told him after a moment, "but I've..I've been so tired lately I just...Didn't bother trying remember where I knew it from."

"What's keeping you up?" Gibbs asked, concern written on his face.

McGee avoided eye contact, weary of telling his Boss that he was having nightmares. I mean, really! Nightmares? Those are what _children_ have when they're afraid of a monster under their bed.

McGee was just too stubborn to admit to even himself that he was afraid.

Afraid of the monsters.

"Is it nightmares, McGee?"

He looked up, surprised.

"H-how-"

"Believe it or not, I had them at one point." Gibbs confided, sliding down next to McGee. "They were bad. Woke me up in the middle of the night, every night."

McGee nodded, knowingly.

"Boss, I..I.." McGee stuttered. "I think I need a break."

_**Sit back New York City **_**  
**_**You're not cute but you're oh so pretty **_**  
**_**When the rain comes you fall up again... **_**  
**_**SUNNY... You are a part of me **_**  
**_**SUNNY... You are the heart of me**_

**Three Days Later**

"Hello, New York City." McGee breathed as he stepped out of his car at the Ritz Carlton he was going to be staying at for the next couple of weeks. "Hello relaxation...And sleep."

He got his suitcase out of the trunk of his Boxter and made his way inside.

"Hello, Sir, how can I help you?" The overly-pleasant receptionist greeted him at the counter.

"Timothy McGee." He stated.

"Ah, yes, Mr. McGee." She grinned as she typed away at the computer. "Ohh, or should I say Agent McGee."

McGee, assuming that his place of work had gone through his credit card payment, inwardly groaned.

"Today, I'm just Tim." He told her.

"Ah, okay, well _Tim_, your Deluxe Parkview Suite is ready for you." She said, emphasizing 'Tim', and handed him a small credit card-looking room pass. "Would you like some help with your bags?"

Her plastered smile was starting to annoy him, so he just shook his head, gave a grin, and headed for the elevator.

Once he was settled in his room, he looked at the clock to realize it was just 6 PM.

"Time for some dinner in Manhattan." He mumbled. He grabbed his jacket and headed out the door.

_"McGee, get him!" _

_He had his Sig Saur drawn and at-the-ready in front of him when Gibbs yelled. _

_He looked and saw the kidnapper with the little girl, running for the stairs to the rooftop._

_"On it, Boss!" McGee called out, although Gibbs probably didn't even hear him as he was lying on the ground with a bullet in his leg._

_McGee bounded up the stairs after the kidnapper, firing shots when he fired at him, and generally just having a tough time keeping up. _

_He made it to the rooftop at least 25 seconds after the kidnapper and little girl and was mortified to find him standing up on the ledge, the small three-year-old dangerously perched on the man's hip._

_"Drop the gun, and give me the girl." McGee demanded, his own gun pointed straight at the man's chest. "Now."_

_"Drop the girl?" The man stated sarcastically, a smirk on his face. "With pleasure."_

_And just like that, the girl fell from his arms, falling the 30 stories to the concrete below._

McGee woke up suddenly, cold sweat pouring down his face.

He'd been in NYC for three days, and was still having the nightmares and he was really starting to get ticked off.

He looked at the clock, sighing at the fact that it read 6:30AM.

He slowly laid back against the large, plump hotel pillows and sighed, rubbing the heels of his hands on his eyes.

"This has got to stop." He moaned, turning over on his side and putting his hands underneath his head.

He lay there for several minutes, unable to shut his eyes, before his cell phone starting ringing.

Extremely confused, he reached over and picked it up, looking at the small LCD screen.

_Abby_

He sighed and flipped it open, pressing it to his ear.

"Hewow?" He answered, his voice muffled by his pillow that he'd put over his face.

"McGee?"

"Yewsh?"

"What..What are you doing?"

He took the pillow off his face,

"attempting to sleep..."

'Oh, I'm sorry Timmy, I didn't even think of the time difference."

"Abs, there isn't a time difference between New York and DC."

"I know. I was just trying to make you feel better. Or myself feel better. Probably myself. So how's New York City? DC is boring without you We miss you! ...Even Tony!"

"...Abby, how many Caf-Pows have you had?"

"Gibbs had me up all night, working on this case. Apparently it's of numero uno importanto...Or whatever. Spanish was never my strong suit."

"You need to go to sleep."

"Sleep? Ha! I laugh in the face of sleep!"

"Well I don't. I welcome it. So if I can..."

"Oh, right...Sorry, Tim. I guess I'll uh...Let you get back to sleep."

"Thank you."

"If you can't get back to sleep, you know my number...It's boring here without you. Did I already tell you that? I think so. Oh well, bye Timmy!"

"Goodbye, Abby."

He shut the phone and let it drop from his hand to the floor with a _thud. _

Ten minutes later, he was picking his phone up and dialing Abby's number.

_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from all these people who need people... You know it really makes me sick **_**  
**_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from expectations, recreations, just for the sake of it **_

_**Sit back New York City **_**  
**_**You're not cute but you're oh so pretty **_**  
**_**When the rain comes you fall up again... **_**  
**_**SUNNY... You are a part of me **_**  
**_**SUNNY... You are the heart of me **_

**Four Days Later**

It was 6 PM as McGee walked up the sidewalk in Manhattan, blissfully unaware...

Things were finally looking up, he thought. He'd had minimal nightmares the past few days, and he was finally starting to heal.

The sun was starting to set and in between two skyscrapers, there was hardly any light at all, save for a few streetlights. There was an alleyway with a couple of dumpsters, a few garbage cans and a lot of trash...

Not to mention the woman crying frantically with a hopeless-looking man trying and failing to comfort her.

The special agent in McGee told him to run towards them and ask them what was wrong, and see if he could help.

But another part of him, a smaller but at the moment much stronger and overpowering part, told him to just keep walking. Any other normal citizen wouldn't think twice.

Sure, the woman was crying, but she had the man there to help her! It's not like she was alone.

As he told the receptionist at the hotel, now, he was just Tim.

Mr. McGee

Not special agent.

"Sir, sir can you please help!"

This snapped McGee out of his thoughts as he looked up at them. The helplessly confused man was motioning for McGee to join them.

He hesitated, seeing that the woman had no obvious physical injuries, and shook his head.

"No..I..I can't..No." McGee stuttered. He kept walking, feeling nervous tension building in his muscles as he came into the open light. (Or what was left of it)

He took a deep breath as he re-entered the world of NYC.

People yelling.

Horns honking.

McGee exhaled as he started across the crosswalk, toward a little bar called 'Sorrow's Place.'...

_**Sit back New York City **_**  
**_**You're not cute but you're oh so pretty **_**  
**_**When the rain falls you come up again **_**  
**_**Sit back New York City friend... **_

"Never could hold your liquor, McGee,,,." McGee mumbled to himself as he slowly tipped back his third beverage.

"Only people that come here have some sadness in their life."

McGee looked up at the unknown voice to see a man, maybe in his 50's, looking just as drunk as McGee felt.

"What 'bout you?" McGee asked. "Do you have some sadness in your life?"

The man nodded,

"I'm a metro detective for NYPD." He told him. "Lost my partner last week."

He pulled out a badge, displaying a picture of someone who was not him.

"That's your partner?" McGee asked, noticing how young he looked in the picture.

"Yeah." The cop told him. "He was just a rookie trying to prove himself."

McGee nodded, knowing all-too-well what that felt like.

"What sadness are you carrying around?" The cop asked, ordering another drink.

"I'm a Special Agent with NCIS." McGee explained. "We've had a few rough cases recently, none with happy endings."

"You a field agent?"

"Yeah." McGee nodded. "A couple of weeks ago, a girl...A little girl...Just vanished from her home. Five days later we found her body dumped haphazardly in a river."

"What else has been eating at ya?" The cop asked, drinking down half his drink in one gulp.

"They..The cases, they've been giving me nightmares." McGee mumbled, staring down into his own drink.

The cop nodded knowingly.

"So, NCIS, huh?" He asked. "That's stationed in DC, right?"

McGee nodded, still staring into his drink.

"Then what are you doing here in the Big Apple?"

"Vacation." McGee told him. "Or maybe I'm escaping. I'm not too sure."

"And how's it been? Have your nightmares stopped?"

He shakes his head,

"They aren't always waking me up, though."

"And how do you feel?"

"Like I'm forgetting something."

"Forgetting?"

He nods.

"Like you're missing somethin'?"

Another nod.

The cop returned the nod, understanding what he meant,

"So," he said, "what are you gonna do now?"

_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from what I'm thinking...I'm thinking...it's too much for anyone... **_**  
**_**Got to get away from here... **_**  
**_**Got get away from what you're drinking... you're drinking...so I'll take another one...**_**  
**

The Washington DC skyline couldn't have come into view any quicker as McGee drove across the New York Avenue bridge over the Anacostia river into DC.

After his little conversation with the NYPD detective, who had identified himself as Henry Bridges, McGee realized what he'd 'forgotten'.

What was missing.

He couldn't _not_ help people.

It was just...His nature.

That woman in the alley, he'd later learned, had been raped and the man _had_ in fact just been an innocent bystander who decided to help her, even though he had no idea what to do.

This news was hard for McGee to come to terms with.

After leaving the bar that night, he immediately went back to his hotel. After a failed attempt at getting a few hours of sleep, he packed his things and started on the 4 hour drive back to DC.

Now as he pulled into the Navy Yard, a familiar feelings washed over him.

Not a 'nightmarish' feeling.

Not a sad feeling.

But a happy feeling

A feeling that felt like he _truly _belonged.

**The Next Day**

"What are you doing over here, McGoo?" Tony asked, sauntering over to McGee's desk.

"I met someone in New York." McGee replied. "He said he was on NYPD, I'm just looking him up."

"Oh..Boring."

Tony smirked as he walked back to his desk.

When the file appeared on his screen, McGee's chin dropped.

Detective Henry James Bridges.

DOB-03/17/1934

DOD-09/11/1987

COD-Line of duty.

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_**A/N**_

_**I also took the liberty of looking up what kinda of room Timmy would have.  
All I can say is...'Dude...'**_

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